Sources from government have confirmed that Ghana’s presidential jet — the Falcon 900 EX — has finally returned to the country after eight months of extensive overhaul in France.
However, they stress that President John Dramani Mahama will only fly in it after the Communications Squadron of the Ghana Air Force certifies the aircraft as fully airworthy.
The return of the jet has triggered public debate about its safety, with many questioning whether the President will switch from commercial flights after months of relying on both commercial airlines and, on several occasions, his brother’s private jet — a practice that drew criticism over safety and perceived conflict of interest concerns.
Jubilee House sources say the President is “ready and willing” to use the Falcon EX but will not do so until the Air Force which manages the aircraft gives it a clean bill of health.
The 15-year-old jet, purchased in 2009, developed significant defects during a routine inspection earlier this year, including fuel tank problems and issues with one of its turbofan engines.
On July 11, 2025, the late Defence Minister, Dr. Edward Omane Boamah, told Parliament that the aircraft was unavailable to fly the Vice-President back to Ghana after a short illness because it had developed risky, multi-focal defects.
These included corrosion in the air-intake plug, receptacle of the second engine and intermittent tripping of the starter generator faults considered serious enough to ground the aircraft.
The Falcon EX was flown to the Dassault Falcon Service MRO facility at Paris Le Bourget (PLB) on March 11, 2025 to undergo its mandatory 24-monthly or 1,600-flight-hour inspection and repairs.
The state of the presidential jet and the President’s reliance on other aircraft has revived calls for Ghana to acquire a new dedicated presidential aircraft.
Those calls have intensified in the wake of a recent helicopter crash that killed two cabinet ministers, three government officials and three Air Force personnel.
The Finance Minister, Dr. Cassiel Ato Forson announced government’s plan to procure four new helicopters and two planes for the Ghana Armed Forces as part of major retooling and modernization.
By Thomas Adotei Pappoe
